Although Fernando Alonso is competing against Max Verstappen this season, the Spaniard has revealed that the Dutchman is why he tuned into F1 last year. Alonso is back on the grid after spending the last two years away from the sport following a disappointing tenure with McLaren. The Spaniard wasn't shy about the fact that he wasn't getting as much joy out of F1 at the end of the 2018 season, however he stated that Verstappen is the one driver that kept him interested in the sport. "Last year when I wasn’t racing, I would put the TV on to see what Max was doing in a race because he was the only one who was going to do something," Alonso told SoyMotor.com. "You knew [Valtteri] Bottas wasn’t going to upset [Lewis] Hamilton and you knew Hamilton would win if nothing weird happened. "But Verstappen, whether he starts on the front row or the car is going well... It's important to have that charisma factor." Verstappen is never short of supporters as his Dutch fans have never shied away from travelling, something Alonso can relate to having experienced something similar during his title-challenging days with Renault. "I look at it with admiration and enjoy seeing all those people so excited, in this case for Verstappen," Alonso added. "Fortunately I've also experienced this when there was that blue tide for so many years that was for Renault and for me."
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